Former township treasurer bound over to circuit court

BESSEMER — The former Ironwood Township treasurer waived her preliminary hearing Tuesday in Gogebic County District Court and was bound over to Circuit Court.

Jyl Olson-DeRosso, 47 is facing 10 felonies in connection with the embezzlement alleged to have occurred from 2011 to 2016 when she was defeated in November’s election.

Olson-DeRosso is charged with five counts of forgery, one count of embezzlement by a public official, refusing to turn over records to the successor treasurer, removal and destruction of public records, using public money for her own use and diversion of taxes or public money by a public official.

The most serious charges against her, the forgery charges, each carry a potential maximum sentence of 14 years in prison.

Olson-DeRosso is accused of issuing checks to herself and taking cash funds in the amount of $114,470 from the tax fund and $81,392 from the trust and agency fund — for a total amount of $196,862 in the five-year period between 2011 and 2016, according to Gogebic County Prosecutor Nick Jacobs.

Jacobs said Olson-DeRosso’s Circuit Court arraignment should take place in the upcoming week or two.

— Richard Jenkins